Luxury Cars: Paying a Premium for Safety Features

It is believed that a car is an extension of one’s self. The rich and the famous take this belief to heart and so they purchase premium vehicles, which make them the envy of the common man. The meaning of luxury cars varies depending on whose point of view is being considered. For the masses, anything beyond their price threshold for a car is considered a luxury car. To the privileged few, it’s about the brand.

There are car brands that conjure up images of sports cars zooming around a racing circuit burning rubber, while other brands are much more connected to royalty and the ruling class. Automobile manufacturers like BMW, Ferrari, Jaguar, and Mercedes Benz have car models that specifically target wealthy individuals. The pricing scheme is rather oppressive, but such is the appeal of prestige cars, at least to the insanely rich.

It is a given that cars that command high prices between $60,000 and $100,000 are beyond the reach of the members of the middle class, so the most they could do is gawk and dream of cars that only a few people have the resources to own. But beyond pricing and social class status, luxury cars are pretty much the same with vehicles in other segments in terms of usability and drivability. The difference is largely in safety features and customization. Safety has always been an important factor in deciding on which car to buy. Evidently, the more safety features in place, the higher the standard retail price.

While an ordinary entry-level car would have one or two airbags, prestige cars are very well cushioned in case of accidents. There are cars with airbags all around to ensure the safety of the driver and the passengers. Of course, no one would argue with this kind of built-in safety feature, but it does further create a disturbance in the price points. It has to be emphasised that safety is not just limited to sticking plenty of airbags when they get the chance. More often than not, luxury cars are the first to introduce safety features that would make other cars pale in comparison.

To keep cars under the prestige category, more features are added that are not necessarily needed in a car, but they do make things much more appealing to the prospective buyer. The addition of nifty gadgets is considered discretionary and not an outright requirement to keep the vehicle moving. There is this perception that these features make the car more important and more valuable.

These additional features include voice-activated GPS, back up camera, monitor, and USB ports. Although some of the high-end cars have these as optional features, prestige cars list them as standard features. It goes without saying that cars with loaded features tend to be regarded highly by both manufacturers and prospective buyers. This is even more pronounced if the features are related to safety and security. When it comes to safety, luxury cars are considered the safest in all segments.